Boynton Spares 3 From Cuts

BOYNTON BEACH -- After two days of singling out employees for layoffs, city commissioners wrapped up their budget hearings on Thursday by backing off three job cuts and agreeing to hire someone new.

City Manager J. Scott Miller recommended on Wednesday that the entire Animal Control Department be laid off and its duties be turned over to the county.

While the resulting three layoffs would have saved more than $100,000, Miller conceded that the county`s animal control officers would need up to two days to respond to calls about dead animals and stray dogs.

Some commissioners acknowledged they had received concerned phone calls from constituents urging that the department and its animal shelter stay open.

That still left 12 employees scheduled for layoffs on Oct. 1, when the city`s new budget year begins. Commissioners pledged on Tuesday not to raise property taxes this year.

Miller had originally recommended a 3.7 percent tax increase that would have raised $870,000 in his proposed $28.8 million budget.

Instead, commissioners decided to lay off two fire inspectors, an accountant, a clerk, a code inspector, an occupational license inspector, a computer programmer and five part-time recreation employees.

Commissioners agreed to hire one new employee: a city engineer.

Engineering Coordinator Vincent Finizio does not have an engineering degree. City commissioners pay an outside firm for engineering services, but Miller said there is now enough work to merit hiring a city engineer.

That did not sit well with Finizio, who would keep his job but would become second-in-command in the Engineering Department.

Over the past two years, Finizio and the city have fought legal battles over salary and employee rights. Earlier this year, Miller recommended hiring a city engineer, only to compromise and suggest hiring an outside firm.